'The Office' ex-boss Michael Scott moving to Boulder

City officials welcome NBC character, praise him as a 'go-getter'

"That's what she said" could be heard resounding loudly throughout Boulder on Friday afternoon.

Michael Scott, the boss on the NBC show "The Office," has officially left Dunder Mifflin Paper Company in Scranton, Pa., and moved to Boulder.

On Thursday night, Scott drove to the airport to get on a flight, headed presumably to Denver International Airport. Once in Boulder, he planned to meet up with fiancée Holly Flax, who moved to take care of her ailing parents.

Scott, who throws around the catchphrase of "that's what she said" after just about any statement, is played by Steve Carell.

Michael Scott, who played the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company boss on NBC s "The Office," center, says farewell to co-workers Meredith Palmer and Kevin Malone on Thursday night.

He revealed on the show Thursday that he will be moving to Boulder with Flax, played by Amy Ryan. As he leaves his position at the company, Deangelo Vickers, played by Will Ferrell, will take over his job temporarily.

In past episodes, Scott mentioned moving to Colorado, but did not specify which city.

Now, he's joining an esteemed group of fictitious characters in Boulder, including Mork, an alien played by Robin Williams, who came to Boulder from the planet Ork in the early 1980s sitcom "Mork and Mindy."

"We certainly welcome (Scott) to Boulder," said Boulder Mayor Susan Osborne. "I will try to see if we can find a key to the city for him."

Osborne, perhaps with her tongue near her cheek, said a welcoming parade or ceremony is likely as soon as Scott gets settled into his new home. On Thursday, Scott had a minor panic attack in his office and said, "I can't do this, all the channels are going to be different there."

He called his fiancée to tell her he couldn't move to Colorado. He asked her "What is the name of our town?" to which she answered, "Boulder."

On April 1, Gov. John Hickenlooper announced that Scott would serve as the new director of paper distribution for the Colorado Department of Natural Resources.

"Scott's success in selling paper will help Colorado effectively and efficiently move the large amount of bark beetle lumber from the forest and into the marketplace, creating tons of jobs and making lots of money," Hickenlooper said in a news release. "This is a unique opportunity to resolve Colorado's forest health and budget issues."

The job with the state has since fallen through for reasons that were unknown. Though he says he has interviews lined up, Scott did not have a job as of late Thursday.

Kim Farin, spokeswoman for the Boulder Convention and Visitors Bureau, said Boulder welcomes Scott, and that she was sure he would have no trouble finding work.

"There's a lot of opportunity for an experienced paper salesman here," she said.

Scott successfully started the Michael Scott Paper Co. in 2009. Because of Scott's experience as a small business owner, Liz Hanson, coordinator of the Boulder Economic Vitality program, said she believed Scott can succeed by starting his own business in Boulder if he can't find a job.

"There are probably many opportunities in one of Boulder's high-tech manufacturing businesses to bring on a go-getter like Michael Scott," Hanson said. "Boulder has such an amazing reputation as a place to start and run a business, that if someone like Michael Scott can make it in Boulder, he can make it anywhere."

When asked why they thought Scott would choose to move to Boulder with his fiancée, city leaders were convinced it was because of Boulder's well-known, positive reputation.

"It's because we're the happiest city in the United States," said Clif Harald, director of the Boulder Economic Council. "Michael Scott could use a dose of happiness."

Some officials, however, were less than thrilled that Scott would be walking the streets of Boulder. Police will be keeping a close eye on him.

"We've seen how Michael Scott treats his co-workers, and we can only hope that he has more respect for the law than he does for the people in his office," said Boulder police department spokeswoman Kim Kobel.

"We won't tolerate that kind of bad behavior here in Boulder. You don't happen to know what kind of a car he drives, do you?"

Michael Scott -- not the rude boss, but a real 58-year-old retired Boulder school teacher -- said he already gets remembered at the post office because of his name.

"Some of my friends say I act like him, but I don't see it," Scott said.

And what does Scott think about having to share the spotlight with a more famous version of Michael Scott?

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